Encouraging Observations from Marshall Phelps about the Critical Importance and Resilience of the US Patent System

Check out Marshall Phelps article about the resilience of the US patent system, published in Gene Quinn’s IP Watchdog blog.

My favorite quote in the article comes from Mark Twain’s Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court: “A country without a Patent Office and GOOD patent laws was just a crab, and couldn’t travel any way but sideways or backwards.”

I am always in favor of strengthening U.S. intellectual property rights. I find it ironic that many argue you can now find greater protections in say China and Germany. If so, this has really become a matter of international competitiveness.

I believe we should always appoint a strong pro-startup and pro-patent director for the PTO.

I believe the PTAB should use the same validity standards as the Courts, thus putting everyone on the same page.

Of course, I believe the U.S. Government should always work aggressively to halt the theft and misappropriation of our intellectual property. We are, in many ways, a national design shop, and as such, our ideas and inventions will always be key to our economic success.

I think the better course is for the PTO to promote new technologies instead of resisting them. Few of us are prescient enough to make judgements about the ultimate success of a particular technology. I’d rather guess wrong and include too much, than guess wrong and lose technological leadership going forward. So err on the side of allowance, and keep in mind, if we say no , it is more than likely another jurisdiction will say yes.

This means, obviously, that it is a mistake to discriminate among technologies, especially in a world where many of the newer inventions and technologies are melding together.

Given the importance of the patent system to the success of America, there is an obvious need for greater public understanding of these issues; from our school kids, to our political leaders, even to our Courts. We should applaud and support efforts to educate broadly in this area.

Consistent with the last point, we must remember some of the lessons of history; the patent system must, above all, remain fair and affordable. It must not become, or be perceived as, the captive of any particular segment or set of users. It should never show favoritism.

We must remember the little guys, the one group our forefathers went out of their way to include. Some of them will grow up to be big guys. (think Gates, Zuckerberg)

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